A marathon day of collective bargaining meetings between NHL owners and players wrapped up with a sight not previously seen during the 12-week lockout - deputy commissioner Bill Daly and NHLPA special counsel Steve Fehr standing beside one another at a podium talking about the progress made during negotiations.

"In some ways I'd say it might be the best day we've had, which isn't too overly optimistic of a picture - there's still a lot of work to do and a lot to be done," Fehr said after the sides broke just before midnight on Tuesday. "We will be back at it tomorrow morning."

The league and union were expected to return to the bargaining table around 9 a.m. on Wednesday, a couple hours before the start of a board of governors meeting. Daly said that event would go ahead as planned.

With commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr excusing themselves from the bargaining table, players and owners engaged in a stirring round of negotiations. Different variations of the group shuffled between rooms at a midtown Manhattan hotel as whispers of optimism circulated.

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was among the 18 players who sat across from six team owners, which included Pittsburgh's Ron Burkle, and those two were said to be strong voices in the room, according to sources.

"Sid's a team guy," said a source close to Crosby. "He's about the game.".